


a mighty ocean or a gentle kiss

by bxnelight



Category: Shadowhunters (TV)
Genre: Aline's son gets kidnapped, Alternate Universe - Pirate, Alternate Universe - Royalty, Bad Parent Robert Lightwood, Enemies to Lovers, F/F, Found Family, Happy ending don't worry, Kidnapping, M/M, Pirate!Aline, Pirate!Helen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-08-14
Updated: 2019-08-19
Packaged: 2020-08-23 17:50:29
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,472
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20246863
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bxnelight/pseuds/bxnelight
Summary: The Penhallow crew and Blackthorn crew had always been enemies, but when the son of Aline Penhallow gets kidnapped by the King Robert of Alicante, the crews team up to get him back, with the help of Princess Isabelle and her handmaidens.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> this was supposed to be for the wlw fic bingo but unfortunately i couldn't finish it on time. here's the first chapter though! i may upload a prequel for this as well soon.

“Aline.” Catarina’s voice broke the heavy silence on the deck, and soon Catarina and Ragnor came through the door, a man following closely behind them.

“This is Magnus Bane, a palace guard. He was a friend of ours before he was sent to the Palace to serve the Royals.” Ragnor said, and the man in question stepped forward, giving Aline a polite smile. 

“I know where your son is, and more importantly, I know how to get him back.”

\--------------

Aline looked around at the group of people in front of her. Catarina and Ragnor, the two people she would trust with her life, who have been by her side from the very beginning. They loved Edward as their own, and were as torn about his disappearance as Aline had been. 

There was Magnus, who in the few days since he joined them, managed to prove himself a man of incredible charm, intellect and heart. He had just as much to lose joining them on this rescue, but he didn’t think twice about risking it all just to do right by his values and help who was otherwise a stranger.

And then there was Helen. The Aline Penhallow three years ago would never have imagined herself to be hosting the entirety of the Blackthorn crew on her own ship, and for them to be involved in the rescue of her son. When Aline’s crew stormed Helen’s fleet a fortnight ago, demanding to know where they were holding Edward captive, she had never expected to learn of the things she did that night. 

She let her eyes linger on Helen for a while, and observed the way she had seemed to let her walls down in the presence of the people she had come to trust. Yet, you could still see the guarded glint in her eyes, that was probably going to be there as long as she lived, ever since the incident that permanently broke her trust in people. 

Aline saw hope in every single one of them. Ragnor, Catarina, Magnus, Helen, and the other crew members who followed her and trusted her to lead them. Every one of them who had no need to but was risking their lives and giving everything they had to help her. She left the cabin quietly and stepped out onto the deck, looking out at the shore that was coming closer to them. Just that little bit of ocean left to cover, and the unlikely team of them will have to execute the plan that they had drawn out and refined over the past couple of weeks. 

The next time the sun set again, it was time. The ship docked, hidden from view of the village by the dense forest. The crew wished the team the best of luck, and began to steer the ship to where it would wait for their return. 

On the shore, a lady with thick, curly hair was waiting for them, dressed in what was easily recognisable as a palace-issued outdoor dress.

“Are you Penhallow?” The lady asked, taking a few steps towards them warily.

“You must be Maia, the Princess’ handmaiden.” Aline replied. “This is my team. You can trust them.”

The wariness never left her wandering eyes as she regarded the group of them, but she smiled when she saw Magnus, a familiar face at least.

“Follow me, the Princess is waiting.”

\---------------

The only sounds were the crunching of the foliage beneath their footsteps. Deep into the forest, they finally made it to where the Princess was sat on her horse, another handmaiden stood beside her. 

“Your Highness.” Magnus was the first to come forward to stand next to Maia, greeting the royal with a bow. 

The others followed his lead quickly, bowing and curtseying, some for the first time in their lives addressing a royal with any form of respect at all. 

Princess Isabelle hopped off her horse, giving it an appreciative pat before turning around to face the crowd again. She stood there, hair tousled from the wind and hands on her waist, and she really did not seem any bit the prim and proper princess Aline thought all princesses were like. 

“You can spare the formalities.” The Princess said, before her gaze searched the group and landed on Aline. “Are you the boy’s mother?” 

“Edward. His name is Edward. And yes, I’m Aline Penhallow, the boy’s mother.”

“Penhallow, huh? I knew I was going to meet you today but it doesn’t make it any less exciting.” She shifted, turning to Helen. “Blackthorn, right? Helen Blackthorn?”

“Yes, Your Highness.” Helen laughed internally at how jarring it had to be seeing the two most wanted pirates in the kingdom, standing right before the Princess. It didn’t help that the Blackthorn crew and Penhallow crew were known rivals, enemies who had fought each other ever since their emergence in the open seas. 

The Princess simply tilted her head in interest, before mounting her horse, her two handmaidens taking the cue to lead a small herd of horses out of the shadows and to the group, helping them all on their horses before getting on one themselves. 

With that, the group began their long, stealthy journey through the dark forest, their path barely lit by the cracks in the canopy of leaves above. There were few conversations, the air mostly filled by the nerves and adrenaline running through their systems. 

Helen rested her hand on Aline’s, clutching onto her middle. Their horse needed little guidance, simply following the one Magnus was on. 

“You okay?” She asked. 

“Scared.” Aline sighed, resting her cheek on Helen’s back. It was warm and steady, everything Aline so badly needed right now. There was just so much going through her mind, but at the very least she had this cherished source of comfort. She hugged Helen tighter against her, and Helen’s grip tightened around her hand in response.

“Edward will be alright.” Helen said, tilting her head towards Aline’s. “He has the strongest mother who will do everything in her power to make sure he’s safe. He will be alright, Aline.” 

A tear slid down her face, but there was also a smile. _ Yeah, he will be. He has to be. _

\------------------

They reached the open fields separating the palace from the forest. The castle itself looked so majestic, so unassuming, but they knew better. In there was a King that would stop at nothing to make sure his firm reign on the kingdom remained that way, and that his son would take his place when the time comes. Somewhere in there, was a little boy, separated from his mother, cold, alone and afraid. 

This is it. There was no turning back now. 

“Please, before we go in. The servants are innocent. The only ones who know of Edward’s captivity are the King’s guards and the King himself. Please spare their lives.” The red-headed handmaiden, Clary, got down from her horse, leading it by its harnesses to stand in front of the group.

Helen and Aline did the same, the latter retrieving a map of the palace grounds sketched by Clary from the duffel bag hanging from her shoulder. She briefed the team on their plan again, committing the sketch to memory. 

Before they make their final journey across the plain fields, Catarina addressed them.

“I don’t know how but I’ve come to care about you all. I better see all of you, and Edward, safe and sound when all of this is over.” Everyone looked around then, giving each other encouraging smiles and nods, especially Aline, who didn’t have the strength to say how grateful she was for them, but hope it is felt anyways. 

\-----------------

The brick wall towered over them, casting a shadow as long as the dirt path was. Ragnor and Magnus hauled out the braided ropes clipped onto the horse’s saddle, attaching them onto the angled hooks. Maia and Clary were the first ones over the wall, and with the layout of guards’ positions fresh in their memory, they knew exactly where to land in order to be out of their sight. They took out the first four guards as planned, knocking them out cold and using some spare cord to tie them to a nearby tree. 

As soon as the rope was thrown back over the wall, it was the Magnus’, Ragnor’s and Catarina’s turn to scale the wall. 

“Are you ready, Your Highness?” Aline turned to ask Isabelle, watching at the trio disappeared over the edge.

“Kidnap me, pirate.” Helen appreciated what Isabelle’s joke did to ease the worry lines on Aline’s face, and with a last reassuring look at Aline, she turned back, leaving her and the Princess to carry out the first step of the plan.


	2. Chapter 2

It was a quiet day, and then all at once it was not. Aline Penhallow marched through the palace gates, one arm wrapped around the Princess’ front, and the other holding a knife against her throat. The palace guards reacted immediately, spears now pointed in the pirate’s direction. They circled her, yelling at her to let the princess go. Aline stood her ground, loudly demanding to have the late Queen’s scepter, or she would have the life of their beloved princess. 

She did not see the spear, nor did she feel the initial stab until her back went completely numb for a second there. 

The knife fell from her hand as she hit the floor, the Princess being pulled to safety by one of the guards. Before her vision fell into darkness, she saw the blurry outline of the blonde-haired pirate coming into view, her hands cuffed together behind her.

\----------------

The palace hallways were quiet at this time of day. There weren’t any royals in sight, just the occasional palace maid or servant walking briskly around to run their errands. Still, Magnus erred on the side of caution, going through his excuse again and again in his head to commit it to memory. He tried to appear as collected and normal as possible, even with his heart racing as quickly as it was. 

He came to a stop in front of the Prince’s study, sure that the Royal was attending to matters at the other wing of the castle at that time. In that room was the seal that only the Prince was ever allowed to use, and Magnus was about to commit high treason by stealing that very seal. 

_Get your shit together, Bane._ He was once a feared pirate, part of a crew that terrorized the seas and ruled their slice of the world. He shouldn’t be sweating that much over stealing a tiny block of wood. 

With a deep breath, he pushed open the heavy mahogany door, slipping into the large room and locating the seal immediately, just sitting there on the desk for his taking. He slid the seal into the pocket hanging off his hip, patting it down to flatten the fabric there as much as possible.

He turned around, ready to leave, and standing at the entrance of the study was Prince Alexander himself, flanked by two of his royal guards. Fuck.

\-------------------

Aline opened her eyes to darkness and an overwhelming odor of urine and other unpleasant smells. She sat up quickly when she abruptly regained her bearings and realised that she was in the palace dungeon. 

“Easy.” She felt hands come around her middle, supporting her and holding her up. Helen was right there, kneeling next to her. 

“Helen,” she began, “you should still be by the outskirts of the palace grounds, you shouldn’t be here… the plan-”

“....Changed twenty minutes ago when you got stabbed by that guard.” It was only then did Aline note the pinching pain in her shoulder, her hand reflexively going to the wound to feel for it. 

“Hey, no touching. I cleaned your wound, but they wouldn’t give me any bandage. You’ve got to be careful with it.” Helen gently removed her hand from her back, replacing it at their rest on her thigh. 

“So, the plan? Where do we go from here? Where’s Edward?” 

“Two cells away. I saw a kid on the way in, but I wasn’t sure if it was him. But you said, he has a long scar across the back of his calf, right?” 

“Yes, extends from his ankle to the back of his knee. Left side.” Helen nodded, confirming that her son was sitting just two cells away from where they were, and suddenly Aline’s eyes were brimming with tears. Wave after wave of relief, fear, regret and happiness hit her all at once. For the two months that he had been missing, Aline felt like a part of her was torn away, and it was all because she had failed to protect him. And now, they were so close yet so far from having him back in her arms again. 

Aline looked up and met Helen’s eyes. There was so much hope, so much fierce determination in her eyes that Aline can’t help but feel a new rush of adrenaline run through her. 

“Maia and Clary will be here in a while with Isabelle. In the meantime, the guards do not know that Edward is your son. So let’s keep it to ourselves, okay?” 

\-----------------

“Your Highness, I can explain.”

“Drop that please, Magnus. It’s just you and I now. What is going on?” The Prince dismissed his guards, leaving the two of them in the privacy of the study. 

Magnus sighs. At this point, it’s between losing the Prince’s trust forever and submitting himself to the mercy of the law, or dragging him down with them and divulging the plan. He knew Alexander well enough. He knows his heart, and he knew that the Prince would risk everything to help them in a heartbeat. But telling him would also make him his accomplice.

He looked at him for another moment, his fingers twitching by his side from how much he wanted to reach out and apologize for ever having to put him in this situation.

“What I’m about to tell you could implicate you in something really serious.”

“Magnus, I know you well enough to know that you wouldn’t do anything that would harm anyone. What is it? Why do you need my seal?” Tension sat on his shoulders, steeling himself for whatever Magnus was about to say.

“You know that young boy that the King introduced to you? The one he wanted you and Lady Lydia to adopt as your own after your marriage?” Magnus tried his best to be gentle, treading carefully around his words as he observed the way Alec’s facial expression subtly morphed into one of realization and horror.

“His name is Edward, and he isn’t an orphan. He was kidnapped.” Before Alec could say anything, Magnus continued. “And that’s why I’m doing this. We’re planning a rescue.”

“Tell me what I can do to help.” There was a mixture of resolve and pain in the Prince’s features, no doubt put there in light of what had been revealed of his father’s character and intentions. 

_I’m sorry, Alexander._ All Magnus could do was pray that this doesn’t end badly, for the stakes just got so much higher for all of them.

\--------------

Ragnor and Cat hid out at the corner of the stairwell. It was taking Magnus longer than expected to retrieve the seal and forge the letter, and they were a few minutes away from doing something rash like barge in and check on him. 

The two of them let out a synchronized sigh of relief when they saw Magnus turn the corner, then froze when they saw who was following behind him. 

“Don’t panic. He knows.” Was all Magnus said.

Ragnor gave him a look. _Is that the entirety of your explanation as to why the Royal fucking Highness himself is on a highly illegal rescue?_

_Yes it is, deal with it, you fucking Cabbage. _

Catarina rolled her eyes at the obvious silent exchange between them.

“Are you two done? We need to move.” She grabbed the seal from Magnus’ pocket, shoving it into her bag.

“Dicks aren’t square. Now let’s go. And Your Highness, please try to stay unseen.” Alexander tried to stifle a giggle at Catarina’s words, and nodded instead at her order. 

The four of them slipped through dark hallways, weaving in and out of hidden paths, led by Magnus at the front of the group. There were close calls in which Catarina had to herd the three men out of view of guards or palace servants, and Magnus sent a flying kiss to his lucky stars for that wonderful woman. 

\--------------

There were sounds of shuffling from the other end of the tunnel, and Maia extinguished two of the three lit candles, dimming their pocket of space to merely just a hint of light. Clary was right next to her, her fists up and ready to knock anyone not in their team out cold. She looked over and realised the Princess was doing the same.

“Your Highness, we got this, just stay down, we’ll protect you.” Clary said in hushed tones, eyes trained on the source of the sounds.

“Since when have I ever needed protection, Miss Fray?” Isabelle smirked, hiking her skirt up and out of the way. 

There figures grew closer and closer, the person at the back carrying a flame torch that cast a shadow of four figures creeping along the sides of the tunnel walls.

“Four. Not our people.” Maia harshly whispered, teeth clenched together, ready to abandon her candle to defend themselves. 

“Magnus?” Clary called out softly, when the person at the front got illuminated just enough. 

“Who do you bring with you?” Isabelle asked, while the approaching group was still a safe distance away.

There was an abrupt halt in their shuffling, as if one of them was about to turn to run the other way, followed by desperate, hushed whispering.

“Izzy?” Her brother’s voice came down the tunnel, and Isabelle’s hands drop back down to her sides. A wave of overwhelming dread filled her, and she straightened herself up, already hearing her brother’s reprimanding voice in her head.

The group of them finally meet, and weapons and fists alike were lowered. There was a heavy tension that sat between the two royals, the Prince’s piercing glare cutting across the space and silently scolding his little sister for keeping this from him. 

“I keep having to say this, but now is not the time.” Once again, it was Catarina that stood her ground, forcing the rest of them to turn their attention fully to her. 

“The seal is right here, and now that the Prince is here, he can pen the order himself.” Catarina reached into her duffel, pulling out the mahogany seal and passing it to Alexander.

“Once the decree is made, Princess Isabelle, Maia and Clary will enter the dungeon with the key. Pass the key to Aline. Then make your way out. Make sure you’re seen wherever you go later, that will be your only alibi.”

Maia and Clary nodded, looking at each other.

“Your Highness, return to the throne room immediately, where the dungeon guards are summoned to see you. Occupy a good hour or so of their time, and give Aline and Edward enough time to break out of their cells and leave the dungeon.”

“Aline and Helen.” Isabelle interrupted, and all eyes were suddenly on her. 

“In the first part of our plan, one of the guards stabbed her in the shoulder. Helen revealed herself so that she can take care of her in the dungeon. She’s in good hands.” She looked directly at Catarina and Ragnor for the last part of her sentence, hoping to ease some of their worries and quell their panic.

“Okay, Aline and Helen.” Catarina took a deep breath, willing her heart to cease its relentless pounding against her chest. “Once Aline, Helen and Edward makes it out, me, Ragnor and Magnus will be there to help them escape the palace grounds. There are horses waiting for us at the outskirts, and if all goes well, hopefully none of you palace servants or Royals will be implicated in this.”  
“After this, we will not be seeing each other again, so…” Magnus trailed off.

“I will send a message to you, to inform you of our safe escape. Don’t you worry.” Ragnor said, recognising that lilt of despondency in his friend’s voice.

With that, the group of them sent one last hope-filled look at each other, much like the one they shared earlier in the day. Just that now, one of them is injured, condition unknown, and the Prince was spontaneously roped in all of a sudden. The stakes are higher, and time crawled tighter around their necks.


End file.
